Coco avant Paris, Coco après Paris
Some of my earliest memories of France go back to when I was six. Cross-legged, I sat with a pen in my hand marking carefully plotted cities on my map of France with a big star.
15
02, 2012
2
02, 2012
L’oiseau bleu, ou pourquoi mon coeur reste à Paris
« Bonjour tout le monde! » nous a lancé joyeusement ma professeure. Et c’est comme ça que mon premier cours de français a commencé. J’ai ouvert le manuel tricolore qui devait être mon guide pendant de nombreuses années à venir : L’oiseau bleu.
25
01, 2012
France and Australia
Individual perceptions and understanding of another country and another culture can be very personal or they can be very general, drawing on a collective point of view that one just follows. They can also evolve over time and be influenced by events.
23
01, 2012
Journey to French
I returned from Europe with souvenirs valuable (chunk of the Berlin Wall that had come down months before), and forgettable. But France, and Paris in particular, stayed with me, and I always knew that I would return. And I promised myself I’d do so speaking French.
20
01, 2012
Working in Paris
I’m a technical writer, working mainly for software development companies, and I’m lucky to have a job that enables me to work in non-English speaking countries. In 2006/7 I managed to acquire a job (and an apartment) in Paris.
19
01, 2012
Bienvenue dans la jungle – 3
Episode 3 : les conducteurs. Dans l’univers du jeu vidéo et de Grand Theft Auto, la voiture reste un jouet, le plus souvent avec une boîte automatique, dont peu de gens savent se servir : j’ai vu trop de fois des conducteurs ayant le pied gauche sur le frein et le droit sur l’accélérateur…
17
01, 2012
Pining for Provence
The first few days back in Canada are certainly best described as culture shock. Our baptismal trip to the local grocery store was a clear indication that we were no longer in France.
13
01, 2012
One year ago… student life in Paris
I’ve been in Melbourne for five months now and summer has finally hit the town. It is mid December, I've just bought a new bikini and now, I'm gently applying skin cream to my sunburns. Yes, this must sound so weird to all my dear French fellows and to Europeans in general who are preparing for Christmas.
27
12, 2011
The final chapter
The final chapter of my own autobiographical novel was played out under Marseille’s autumn sky. The sun slowly setting on nearly three years of overwhelming joy and happiness in France.
27
12, 2011
Hugs and Kisses
Because kisses are such an integral part of interaction in France, one might think that this implies that the French are more comfortable with intimate displays of affection, right? Not necessarily. Try hugging a French person.
